Method of sleeving a button shank



United States Patent [72] Inventor Eugene F. l-lofe Shepherdstown, West Virginia [2 l] Appl. No. 797,299

[22] Filed Nov. 26, 1968 Division of Ser. No. 620,463, Mar. 3, 1967, now Pat. No. 3,440,984, Apr. 29, 1969 [45] Patented Sept. f2, 1970 V [73] Assignee The Londontown Manufacturing Company Baltimore, Maryland a corporation of Maryland [54] METHOD OF SLEEVING A BUTTON SHANK 1 Claim, 11 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 112/265 [51] lnt.Cl DQSb 3/14 50 Field ofSearch 112/265; 104,110

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,213,816 10/1965 Solanka 112/265 Primary ExaminerRichard J. Scanlan, Jr. Attorney-Kimmel, Crowell and Weaver ABSTRACT: A method for circumscribing a hollow flexible and elastic sleeve (shank) around the threaded connection between a conventional button and a fabric material to which the button is secured.

Patented Sept. 22, 1970 3,529,561

Sheet 1 01'2 INVENTOR. EUGNE F. HOPE,

M M M ATTOB/VEYS,

' FIG 9.

Patented Sept. 22, 1970 3,529,561

255 INVENTOR. EUGENE F. HOPE, BY

nrroe/vf VS.

METHOD OF SLEEVING A BUTTON SHANK This is a division of application Ser. No. 620,463, filed March 3, I967, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,400,984.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention pertains to the general art of sewing and, more specifically, the present invention relates to a method for sewing buttons on fabrics while encasing the threaded connection therebetween in a sleeve or shield which is commonly known in the garment industry as a shank. Shanking is a common practice in this industry when in the course of garment construction or in other sewing operations it becomes necessary to sew a button on a fabric or other material in such a manner as to cause the button to be spaced from the fabric to which it is connected. This operation is generally carried out in order to facilitate the buttoning and unbuttoning of the garment, and is conventional in practice.

Shanking is usually accomplished by wrapping a thread around the threaded connection between the button and the garment to lend stiffness and semi-rigidity thereto, and this operation may be performed by hand or machine. Manual shanking is time consuming and adds, of course, to the cost of the manufacture of the garment.

Many attampts have heretofore been made to machine perform this operation. For example, it has been proposed to provide spacer means of the washer type wherein the washer type element is positioned between the fabric and the button and is provided with openings corresponding to the conventional apertures formed in the button. Such means have not been commercially accepted because of undue expense in manufacture and in handling and/or because of the relatively loose fit of the washer element around the thread securing the button to the fabric. Relative movement between these parts created unwanted friction on the thread resulting in the excessive wear thereof and the ultimate and frequent loss of buttons from the garment. In this same vein, the prior art suggests the sewing directly through a penetrable spacer element, but the practice of this type of shanking causes the dulling of the sewing needles necessitating frequent replacement and excessive expenses in handling.

Perhaps the most successful step forward in this art of recent times is represented by the patent to Joseph Solanka, filed Feb. 25, 1963, and which issued on Oct. 26, I965 as U.S. Pat. No. 3,213,816, the patent being entitled Method and Means for Sewing and Shanking Buttons".

This'patentee disclosed a method and apparatus for shanking buttons with a flexible elastic sleeve which obviated many of the defects and disadvantages of the then prior art practices, and the invention has been proven to be commercially acceptable. However, the practice of this invention presented still other problems, for it taught that to shank a button with a flexible and elastic sleeve it was first necessary to mount the sleeve on a hollow cylindrical hub integrally formed on a frangible economically disposable disc. Then, after sewing it is necessary that the hub beremoved from the slee ve to permit the sleeve to contract about and shank the threads connecting the button with the fabric. This was accomplished by breaking the disc along a preformed scoreline after which the now fragmented disc was discarded.

While the practice of this invention resulted in a commercially acceptable shank, it did add certain costs to the completed garment in the nature of handling charges for it was necessary to cause the disc to be mounted and thereafter to install on the hubs thereof the elastic shank, perform the sewing operation, and when the sewing operation was completed to remove the garment from the machine and to separate the disc from the shank. i

It is, therefore, now one of the primary objects of the instant invention to provide an improved method for performing a button shanking operation wherein the disadvantages and inconveniences of known prior art practices as referred to above and still others not mentioned herein are obviated;

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method for quickly shanking buttons wherein the practice of the invention results in a saving of time in the finishing of the garment and wherein the services of an unskilled mechanic need only be employed;

A further object of this invention is to provide a method for shanking buttons with a hollow flexible and elastic sleeve and wherein the sleeve is supported in an expanded condition during the sewing operation and is releasable therefrom at the completion of the sewing operation for contraction of the threads forming the connection between the button and the fabric to which the button is secured;

Other and further objects and advantages of the instant invention will become more manifest from a consideration of the following specification when read in conjunction with the annexed drawings, in which:

FIG. I is a fragmentary perspective view of a conventional button sewing machine and illustrates an attachment constructed and which is capable of performing the method of this invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view of a portion of the sewing machine shown in FIG. 1, this figure showing the attachm eh t as having been swung to straxmserameaeanaa and with the component elements thereof moved to their nonoperating positions;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view of the sewing machine with the attachment swung to its operative position and com ponent elements thereof readied for the sewing operation;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the button shanking attachment, per se;

FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the attachment shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged longitudinal detail crosssectional view, FIG. 6 being taken substantially on the vertical plane of line 6-6 of FIG. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the shank holding means in their respective closed positions;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary detail cross-sectional view, FIG. 7 being taken substantially on the vertical plane of line 7-7 of FIG. 6, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary top plan view of the shank holding means illustrating the same in their closed positions and showing the means in association with a shanking means illustrated in dotted lines;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary top plan view of the shank holding means and is similar to FIG. 8, FIG. 9 showing the shank holding means in their separated positions with the elastic and resilient shanking means shown in dotted lines encircling the same;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary detail cross-sectional view illustrating the use of the shanking means and apparatus during the button sewing operation; and

FIG. 11 is a detail transverse cross-sectional view of a button as sewed to a fabric or material and shanked in accordance with this invention.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, reference numeral 20 designates a conventional or standard button sew ing machine commonly employed in garment manufacturing industries. The sewing machine 20 includes a base member 22 which is normally supported on a table or other related structure 24 having a normally horizontal top 26. As is seen in FIG.

1 of the drawings, the base member 22 is so arranged and disposed relative to the table top 26 so as to present a noimally upright front wall 28 of the base member 22 in inwardly spaced relationship relative to the front edge 30 of the table top 26 so as to provide a platform space 32 therebetween. Projecting laterally from the sewing machine 20 adjacent the lower end thereof and in vertically spaced relationship relative to the platform space 32 is a throat member 34 on which is superimposed the usual plate 36 in which is formed, adjacent the outer end thereof, the conventional elongated substantially rectangular needle receiving opening 38.

The sewing machine 20 is seen to further include a normally horizontal flange 40 which projects forwardly and in the direction of the front edge 30 of the table top 26, and the flange 40 is overhung by a head device 42 which, at its outer end is formed with a vertically elongated conventional housing 44 which shieldingly encases mechanism for effecting reciprocation of the sewing machine needle 46 threaded at its lower end 48 in the usual manner with a thread strand 50.

Conventional releasable button holding clamp means is indicated by reference numeral 52, the clamp means 52 including a pair of laterally spaced arms 54, 56 which engage a conventional button 58 at substantially the diametrically opposed sides thereof. The button 58 is formed with first and second pairs of transversely extending thread receiving openings, 60, 62, respectively, and means are provided in the usual manner for shifting the button 58 relative to the needle 46 to sequentially present each pair of openings 60, 62 to the needle whereupon operation of the sewing machine 20 effects a threaded connection between the button 58 and the material on which it is to be sewed.

Since the sewing machine 20, per se, does not constitute a part of this invention, only so much thereof has been described above and illustrated herein as to provide a background for the understanding of the apparatus to be described immediately below which is capable of performing the subject matter of this invention.

The apparatus is herein disclosed as comprising an attachment 64 for the conventional sewing machine 20. It should be recognized, however, that the apparatus is of such nature as to lend itself well to the incorporation thereof during the manufacturing stages of the conventional sewing machines as represented at 20, or it may be employed as the illustrated and described attachment with existing button sewing machines without in any manner requiring modification or revision in the structure of the button sewing machine 20 as originally marketed.

The attachment 64 is seen to include an elongated flat substantially rectangular bar 66 screw connected as 'at 68 adjacent one of its respective ends to the upper end of the flange 40. The other end 66A of the bar 66 projects laterally beyond the side wall 70 of the sewing machine 20, and to this projecting end 66A is pivotally connected as at 72 the outer free end of one arm 74 of a reversed substantially Z-shaped lever 76 formed of a resilient material. As is seen in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the other end of the arm 74 is integral with one end of the bight portion 78 of the lever 76, and the other end of the bight portion 78 terminates in a laterally projecting second arm 80 to which further reference will be made below.

, Reference numeral 82 denotes, in general, a conventional L-shaped angle member having a foot portion 84 fixedly secured to tlte ur dersi de of the first arm 74 of the lever 76, this point of connection being effected at a point spaced inwardly from the pivotal connecting means 72. The angle member 82 also includes an upright' leg se gtion 86 the legsection 86 spanning one of the edges 88 of the lever 76 and the leg section 86 is provided with an edge 90 (seeFlGS. 1, 2 and 3) which is adapted to engage the adjacent edge 92 of the bar 66 when the lever 76 is swung in a clockwise directionfrorn its position shown in FlG. 2 to its position shown in FIG. 3 thereby limiting the pivotalt urning movement of the lever 76 in this direction. Thus, and in effect, the L-shaped angle member 82 constitutes abutment means.

In FIG. 1 of the drawings it is seen that the lower end of an externally threaded shank 94 of a bolt 96 is threadedly engaged with the first arm 74 of the lever 76 and projects upwardly therefrom. The bolt 96 is headed as at 98 to serve a function to be described, and a conventional lock nut 100 serves to secure the bolt to the first arm 74.

- The looped end 102 of an elongated helicoidal spring 104 under tension surrounds the shank 94 of the bolt 96 and is held against inadvertent displacement over the upper end thereof by means of the enlarged head 98. The other end of the spring 104 extends across the upper end of the flange in spaced relationship relative thereto and is fixedly anchored to the machine 20 at any desirable point thereon (not shown). The arrangement is such that the helicoidal spring 104 constantly biases the lever 76 for pivotal movement in a clockwise direction from its position shown in FIG. 2 in order to enable the same to assume the position thereof shown in FIG. 3. It will be here understood that this pivotal movement is limited by the abutment means 82.

The first and second arms 74, 80, respectively, of the lever 76 are disposed in substantially horizontal offset planes with the arm being vertically spaced below the arm 74. Screws 106 extend transversely through the second arm 80, and the lower ends thereof are threadedly engaged in suitable apertures (not shown) formed in one end of an elongated substantially rectangular flat bracket 108. The other end of the bracket 108 projects laterally beyond the edge 88 of the lever 76 to serve a function to be described infra.

Reference numeral 110 indicates an elongated flat substantially rectangular support plate having a main body portion 112. From one end 114 of the main body portion 112 and adjacent its longitudinally extending marginal edge I16 longitudinally projects an elongated substantially rectangular coplanar tongue 118 which terminates, at its outer end, in a downwardly turned integrally connected substantially rectangular flange I20. Screws 122 extend transversely through the bracket 108 and are threaded into suitably threaded apertures (not shown) formed in the tongue 118 to fixedly secure the tongue in superimposed. relationship thereunder and with the main body portion 112 of the support plate 110 projecting longitudinally beyond the edge 124 of the bracket 108.

The main body "bdriilt 112 at its forwardly facing longitudinally extending edge 126 is formed, adjacent its end 128, with an inwardly extending transverse U-shaped slot 130 which is defined by an inwardly located longitudinally extending bight wall 132 from the ends of which project laterally spaced and substantially parallel side walls 134, 136. Fixedly secured to the underside of the main body portion 112 is the leg section 138 of an elongated substantially L-shaped first tine 140. As is seen in the several FIGS. of the drawings, a portion of the leg section 138 extends into the slot 130 and terminates in an upright finger 142 having a chord shaped configuration when viewed in top plan view as seen in FIGS. 8 and 9. As is seen in FIG. 6, the outer side 144 of the finger 142 tapers inwardly from its upper end towards the outer end of the leg portion 138 to serve a function to be described below.

That side of the finger 142 oppositely disposed with respect to the side 144 is formed with a substantially planar face 146 as is seen in FIG. 9. A

The underside of the plate 112 is also formed with an inwardly extending substantially U-shaped guide channel 148 which opens at one of its ends in the side wall 136 of the slot 130, and at its other end, into the plane of the end 114 of the main body portion 1 l2. Mounted for reciprocation within the guide channel 148 is the elongated leg section 150 of a second tine 152. The second tine 152 has an end portion thereof extending into the slot 130 and projecting beyond the side wall 136. As is seen in the drawings, this end portion of the tine 152 terminates in an upright second finger 154 also having an arcuate side 156. The second finger 154 at that side thereof opposite side 144 is formed with a planar face 158. The arrangement and disposition of the tines 140, 152 is such that the planar faces 146, 158 of the fingers 142, 154 are flush in faceto-face contact with one another when the attachment 54 is in its inoperative condition, and when made operative, the finger 154 separates from the finger 142 in a direction towards the wall 136 while the face 158 maintains its parallel confronting relationship relative to the inner face 146. The leg section 150 of the second tine 152 is held for its reciprocation in the channel 148 by means of a closure plate 160 which extends thereacross and is secured to the underside of the main body portion 112 of the support plate 110 as by screws 162. As is seen in FIG. 4 of the drawings the closure plate is substantially rectangular in configuration and is so positioned that one of its respective ends 164 is contained in the plane of the side wall 136 and a longitudinally extending edge 166 thereof is disposed in the plane of the longitudinally extending edge 126 of the main body portion 112.

A motor base support means is generally designated by reference numeral 168 (see FIG. 5), the motor base support means 168 comprising an elongated substantially L-shaped element 170 having a normally upright foot portion 172 fitting substantially flush against the flange 120, and an elongated substantially rectangular leg section 174 which projects laterally away therefrom in a direction away from the main body portion 112. The foot portion 172 is fixedly secured to the flange 120 as by way of the screw 176 and nut 178.

Again referring to FIG. 5 of' the drawings, reference numeral 180 denotes a substantially rectangular motor base support plate, in general, the motor base support plate 180 having an end thereof extending under the leg section 174 and being secured thereto by the screws 182 and cooperating nuts 184, respectively.

The motor means as illustrated in the drawings is designated by reference numeral 186, and in the embodiment of this invention illustrated herein, the motor means is seen to comprise an electro magnet. The motor means 186 is of conventional constructi n and includes as component elements thereof the oppositely disposed mounting brackets 188, 190, each of which is formed, adjacent their respective lower ends, with elongated substantially rectangular and diverging mounting flanges 192, 194, respectively. Each of the mounting flanges 192, 194 is provided with a transversely extending internally threaded opening 196 which serve a function to be described.

Referring now to FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, it is seen that the electromagnetic motor means 186 is superimposed on the motor base support plate 180 with the longitudinally extending edge 198 of the flange 194 fitting flush against the longitudinally extending edge 200 of the foot section 174. The motor base support plate 180 is provided with a suitable transversely extending aperture or opening '(not shown) to receive a threaded screw 202 therethrough, the screw 202, in turn, being threadedly received within the threaded opening 196 of the flange 194 thereby releasably securing the motor means 186 on the motor base support plate 180. Since it is immaterial to the operation of this apparatus which side of thehead 42 the apparatus is disposed, the right and left hand flanges 192, 194 with their respective internally threaded openings 196 are provided. a

The electro magnetic motor means 186 includes a conventional reciprocable T-shaped armature 204 which, in this case includes a stem 206 which is slidably received internally of the motor means 186,and an externally disposed cross head 208. Also included in the construction of the electro magnetic motor186 is the conventional energizing winding 210 from the opposed ends of which extends the leads 212 towhich further reference will be made below.

Coupler means 214 is fixedly connected to thecross head 7 208, the coupler means including a pair of lugs 216, 218 which extend from the cross head 208 in the direction away from the stern 206, and as is seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, the lugs 216,218 are disposed in laterally spaced and substantially parallel confronting relationship relative to one another. The lugs 216, 218 confront, in proximity but spaced relationship, that end of the tine 152 remotely disposed with respect to the finger 154, and the confronting lugs 216, 218 receive therebetween the protruding substantially flat tongue 220 which extends lon- The armature construction further includes means which constantly bias the same for movement to its extended outward position as is shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings. To this end, the outer terminal end of the pivot pin or screw 224 is provided with a diametrically extending opening 228 which receives one end 230 of an elongated helicoidal spring 232 under tension. The other end 234 of the spring 232 is anchored within atransversely extending opening 236 formed in the main body portion 112 of the plate adjacent its end From he foregoing description, and through reference to the drawings, it will be readily appreciated that upon energization of the winding 210 the armature 204 will be retracted therein against the force exerted by the spring 232. This retraction effects movement of the sleeve 222 in the same direction and consequently, movement of the tine 152 in the same direction. With the component elements of the device as shown in their respective inoperative positions, and with the special referenceto FIGS. 6 and 8 of the drawings, en'ergization of the winding 210 and the subsequent movement of the tine 152 will cause the finger 154 to move from its position shown in FIGS. 6 and 8 to its operative position shown in FIG. 9, all to serve a function to be described. Conversely, when the winding 210 is electrically deenergized, the force of the heli- 'coidal spring 232 will cause the armature 204 to move outwardly of the winding 210 thereby forcing the tine 152 and its finger 154 to move from their respective positions as shown in FIG. 9 and to again assume their inoperative positions illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 8. The tine 140, being fixed, will not move during the reciprocable movement of the tine 152.

The electro magnetic motor means is energized through a conventional switch controlled electric circuit. To this end, the leads 212 are connected in the usual manner to one of the terminal ends of the wires 238, 240 of cable means 242.- The other ends of the wires 238, 240 of the cable 242 are connected to any conventional electrical power outlet source.

Wire 240 is interrupted to provide ends 24A, 240B which are, in turn, connected to the opposite sides of the normally open single pole, single throw, push-button switch of conventional design and herein indicated by reference numeral 244. The switch 244 includes the push-button actuator rod means 246 normally biased to its uppermost position as shown in, FIG. 1 when the switch 244 is open.

Support means for thepushbutton control switch 244 are provided and are indicated in FIG. 1 by reference numeral 248. The support means 248 comprises an inverted substantially L-shaped element having an elongated substantially rectangular leg section 250 fixedly secured by conventional means to the forward or front edge 30 of the table top or support 26. Projecting laterally from the leg section 250 and away from the edge 30 is a normally horizontal foot portion 252 to which the switch 244 is connected and held locked in place by securing means 253. The support means 248 is installed in position convenient to the operator's hand and is here illustrated as being positioned at a point intermediate the throat 34 and themotor means 186 when the attachment 64 is in its operative position as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings.

Reference numeral 254 denotes a relatively small substantially hollow sleeve, collar or shank, formed of a resilient material such as rubber or other suitable plastic compositions having comparable inherent physical properties. The shanks 254 shown as resting on the top 26 of the table 24 and to the right of the button sewing machine 20 as viewed in FIG. 1 are illustrated in their relaxed fully contracted position prior to their use in a button shanking operation described infra. However, and in conjunction with the use of the apparatus 64, it should here be noted that the shanks 254 in their untensioned relaxed and contracted condition are adapted to be mounted over the fingers 142, 154 (see FIG. 8) when the finger 154 is juxtaposed against the finger 142 and the apparatus 64 is inoperative. When the apparatus is rendered operative, the motor means 186 being energized, the finger 154 separates from the finger 142 to expand the shank 254 from its relaxed original substantially hollow cylindrical condition as shown in FIG. 8 to its substantially oblong configuration of FIG. 9.

The apparatus 64 is non-complex in operation, and the shanking operation may best be described by first referring to FIG. 2 of the drawings.

The apparatus 64 here shown is in one of its two inoperative positions, As illustrated in this FIG., the lever 76 has been pivoted about its pivotal connection 72 in a counter-clockwise direction from its position shown in FIG. 1, and in so moving the support plate 110 and the component elements of this invention associated therewith have been moved through the same arc. The degree of movement is such as to permit the corner 112A of the main body portion 112 of the support plate 110 to clear the adjacent edge 36A of the plate 36, it being understood that these two plates are normally vertically spaced from one another when the apparatus 64 is in its operative position of FIG. 1.

It will be recalled that the lever 76 is formed of a resilient material and when it is depressed to move the plate 110 into its temporary inoperative or disengaged position relative to the sewing machine and as is illustrated in FIG. 2, the support plate is constantly biased for movement upwardly into the plane of its operative or engaged position as is shown in FIG. 1.

With the support plate 110 released from its inoperative or disengaged position of FIG. 2, the lever 76 together with the support plate 110, under the tension of the spring 104, will swing in a clockwise direction to move to its operative or engaged position overhanging the plate 36, as shown in FIG. 1, and comes to rest between the plate 36 and needle 46. This turning movement is limited by the engagement of the abutment means 82 with the bar 66. The turning movement of the lever 76 is arrested so as to position the slot 130 in confronting vertically spaced relation relative to the needle receiving opening 38 and the needle 46. The plate 110 remains in this engaged position for the sewing of all buttons requiring shanking in accordance with the teachings of this method. It is only disengaged when a button is to be sewn without the shank.

A stay button 255 is placed in the recess in the conventional manner and the (top) button 58 is engaged in the button clamp means 52, all in the conventional manner. The operator now picks up one of the relaxed shanks 254 and inserts it over the fingers 142, 154, as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 8.

A piece of fabric material 256 (see FIGS. 10 and 11), here shown as being folded or doubled upon itself to form the laminae 258, 260, is positioned by the operator across the plate 36 and below the support plate 110. The operator now depresses the switch actuator button 246, lowers the button clamp means 52 and starts the sewing machine 20, all in the usual manner.

The switch actuator button 246, having been depressed, causes the winding 210 to be energized thereby effecting the retraction of the armature 204. As the cross head 208 moves in the direction of the winding 210 the tine 152 follows in the same direction, the leg 150 sliding to the right in the guide channel 148, as viewed in FIG. 6, carrying with it the finger 154. The finger 154 thus separates from the fixed finger 142 causing the shank 254 to expand from its relaxed or contracted position of FIG. 8 to its expanded condition of FIG. 9.

The longitudinal axes of the leg sections 138, 150 are preferably in co-alignment with the major axis of the opening 38 whereby as the fingers 142, 154 are separated relative to one another, the major axis of the expanded shank 254 is substantially coaxial with the major axes of the leg sections 138, 150, and the major axis of the opening 38. Also, the shank 254, when expanded, assumes a configuration concentric with respect to the opening 38 to freely permit the needle 46 to reciprocate therethrough during the sewing operation.

When the button 58 is lowered as described above, the button engages the upper ends of the fingers 142, 154 (see FIG. 10), and during the usual and normal operation of machine 20, the needle 46 carries the thread 50 upwardly and downwardly through the button openings 60, 62, through the laminae 25 260 and the openings 264 of the stay button 255,

all in the usual and conventional manner. However, and as is seen in FIG. 10 of the drawings, the needle 46 in this case reciprocates to sew the threaded connection 264 between the button 58 and the fabric 256 between the fingers I42, 154 and inside of the expanded shank 254.

When the threaded connection 264 is completed, the machine operation 20 is halted, the component elements thereof returning to their inoperative positions of FIG. 1. Then the operator releases the actuator button 246 opening the circuit to the winding 210 thereby deenergizing the same, whereby the helicoidal spring 232 causes the armature 204 to move in a direction away from the winding 210 to assume its inoperative position of FIGS. 1, 2, 4 and 5.

With the winding 210 deenergized, the tine 152 now moves in the reverse direction, the leg section 150 sliding in the guide channel 148 to cause the finger 154 to return to its closed juxtaposed position relative to the finger 142 as is illustrated in FIG. 8.

The operator now raises the button clamp means 52 and removes the garment or fabric 156 from the machine. In effecting the removal of the fabric 156, the sewing thread is broken and the shank 254 is lifted off the fingers 142, 154. The fabric "156 is then moved to a new position relative to the plate 36 or another piece of fabric is substituted therefor and the above described operation is repeated in the shanking of a second button.

As has been stated above, the support plate is held in its described operative or engaged position of FIG. 1 at all times during the button shanking operation. Only when the button being sewn is not to be shanked is the plate 110 moved to its temporary inoperative or disengaged position of FIG. 2.

The taper on the fingers 142, 154 is provided to maintain a frictional lock on the shank 254 while the finger 154 is moving away from the finger 142 for, in the absence of such a taper, the shank 254 could be inadvertently displaced from its circumscribing position relative to the fingers 142, 154 when subjected to the expanding operation.

Having described and illustrated one embodiment of this invention in detail, it will be understood that the same is offered merely by way of example, and that this invention is to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A'method for sewing buttons on a fabric and shanking the threaded connection therebetween comprising the steps of:

moving a button to be sewed on said fabric into spaced confronting relationship relative to one side of said fabric; interposing and endless shank, formed of a resilient material, between said button and said fabric;

expanding said shank by applying an internal force thereon,

said expansion being effected only after its interposition; sewing said button to said fabric to form said threaded connection with said shank in spaced circumscribing relation relative to said threaded connection; and the further step of:

removing said internal force after said sewing step has been completed to enable said shank to contract about said threaded connection. 

